Asked about sending North Korean troops, Putin said, "It's on our own."

Russian President Vladimir Putin did not deny the report on the deployment of North Korean troops, saying, "It is up to us to do what and how we will do with North Korea."

According to Tass news agency and others, Putin responded to a U.S. reporter at a news conference on the settlement of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia, on the 24th local time, asking for his views on satellite images showing North Korean troops being sent to Russia.

This is the first time Putin has mentioned the dispatch of North Korean troops.

"I have no doubt that the North Korean leadership takes the agreement seriously," Putin said, noting that the Russian House of Representatives ratified a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty between Russia and North Korea and that the treaty has provisions related to mutual military aid.

"What we do and how we do in this clause is our job," he said.